Administrative Manor,
Provost's Office.
Rina's POV
The silence was a void. It stretched across the mahogany, insulating Jaxon and Caleb's shock from the predatory fascination of the eighteen other scions.
Jaxon's massive frame remained folded over his chair. He looked less like a conqueror and more like a man watching his foundation turn to sand.
I sat poised in my gilded seat. The raw pain of the severed mate bond throbbed, but I used it as an anchor. Satisfaction was a cold, pure thing. This was vengeance delivered not through a blade, but through the simple act of existing.
"I thought you were dead?" Caleb broke the silence, his Gamma discipline losing to terror.
"A fair assessment." I offered him cool pity as I smoothed a wrinkle from my purple robe.
"No, I woke up during my funeral. Didn't Mason tell you?"
Jaxon flinched, betrayal contorting his face. Mason - his closest confidant - had kept the truth from him. The Alpha had walked into this room blind. The humiliation I dealt was nothing compared to the treachery of his own Beta.
"Since you are concerned with my territory, Alpha, let me be clear," I said, my voice gaining a cutting edge. "I am the owner of Nespresso. How dare you try to grab my land while the ink on the deed is still wet?"
"You're the owner?!!!" Jaxon exploded.
He then surged forward, a snarl aimed at me.
"How dare you take back Selene's land just to get at her? Is that why you came back to life? To spite her?"
His narcissism was exhausting. He truly believed the world revolved around his romantic choices.
"I took back my dowry," I replied. "It's a financial recovery, not an aggression. Learn the difference between a plot and a bank statement."
"I bet ou did it to spite Selene!" Jaxon growled, his claws scoring the mahogany.
"Alpha Jaxon," I retorted, my voice dropping. "I am not petty. I am far too busy with more pressing issues to deal with a mate snatcher."
The dismissal was absolute. I had to make it clear that I didn't acknowledge Selene as a rival, only a label.
"Exquisite," Thalassa Aegir whispered.
The Mermaid Princess looked on delighted, while the scions shifted. Jaxon's shamelessness had alienated the room.
"Alpha Jaxon's actions were uncouth," Phoenix Princess Elara, said aloud. "Dowry reclamation is mandated by the Council. To contest it is to contest the law."
"Assaulting a noble over property is a breach of the Academy charter." Dahila, the Witch Noble, added her disdain. "We won't tolerate such predatory behavior."
"A weakness exposed is a vulnerability earned, Alpha." Zephina, the Shadowborn, offered a chilling final word. "Stand down!"
Jaxon's face turned crimson. The walls seemed to buckle under his suppressed power. He was on the verge of wolfing out.
"What a shameful display of self-control," Prince Kaelion Draven's voice thundered.
He didn't move, but his presence slammed into Jaxon like ice.
"To threaten a noblewoman over reclaimed dowry land is beneath the Fenrir name."
"Restrain your temper, Jaxon." Dragon Prince Zadkiel, joined the alliance. "We are here for diplomacy, not a spat over scraps."
The combined weight of the two most powerful males crushed Jaxon's rage. He sat back, trembling and defeated. The Provost seized the moment, flying through the remaining administrative warnings to end the meeting before the room ignited.
As we rose, an alliance of female power - Thalassa, Dahila, Elara, and Zephina - formed around me. We headed for the doors, but Jaxon blocked the path.
"Lumira," he growled. "I need a private word. Now."
"I think not," Princess Thalassa said.
"He doesn't," I agreed with a smile, though I didn't look at him.
"Jaxon, darling!" A sharp artificial laugh suddenly cut through the hall.
Selene approached, draped in fresh white ceremonial Saintess silks, her eyes holding a frantic desperation. She clung to Jaxon's arm, her voice dripping with sweetness.
"Oh, Lumira! I'm glad you survived," she cooed, flaunting Jaxon's wedding ring. "It must be difficult finding everything has changed. But Jaxon and I are married now. You mustn't cause a scene. It makes you look desperate."
"She really thinks this is a love triangle." Elara gagged.
"Were you begging him for a minute alone?" Selene smirked.
Already at my limit, I faced her, my violet eyes devoid of emotion.
She was met only with a sneer, my voice a whipcrack.
"Listen closely, Selene. Over my dead body will I ever have anything to do with Jaxon again."
"I am not interested in your life, your relationship or your marriage." I growled, the finality squarely hitting them both. "Keep your consolation prize, Selene. I'm done with both of you."
I walked away, flanked by my allies. Jaxon stood stunned. He had expected a girl who would beg... Ha! In this dreams!
He should realize by know that she was gone, replaced by a ruthless queen.
----
Meanwhile,
The Training Grounds.
Austin's POV
The sand was soaked with sweat and blood that wasn't mine. I stood in the center, breathing evenly. Ten upperclassmen lay in the dirt. They were the elite strike team, but they had failed to touch me.
'Weaklings' I thought, as I headed for the showers.
In the locker room, Sorcery students huddled together gossiping as usual.
"I saw her," one whispered. "Lumira Duskbane. She's back. I heard that she caught a dagger mid-air and humiliated Alpha Jaxon and Luna Selene."
The world tilted, as my blood simmered. I walked past them, my presence so dark they scrambled aside. I threw my locker open, denting the metal.
I pulled out a silver pendant and sat on the bench. Inside was a portrait of Lumira and a lock of her hair. I had stolen it a year ago. It was my only sacred relic.
A jagged laugh escaped me, as I caressed her photo.
"You're back," I whispered, kissing the crystal. "My goddess, you came back for me."
I pressed my mouth to the hair, inhaling the scent of jasmine. Jaxon had let her die, but I had trained until my heart turned to stone for this day.
"I will find you tonight," I murmured. "I will offer you the heads of everyone who celebrated your absence. I will carve them out of your way until there is only me."
I snapped the pendant shut against my bare chest, ignoring the cold metal bitting into my skin.
The White Witch was back, and her Mad Elf was ready to serve her.